Without eyes, I see
by IluthraDanar
Summary: Sylar meets someone who, in needing his help, helps him see what he needs to do in order to be human again. A oneshot, having nothing to do with the current season. Happens in between his attempt to find Matt, and whatever we see in the next epi. Sylar/OC


**This popped into my head after seeing Pass/Fail. Don't know why, but it did. It's a one shot, so not taking up a lot of time. **

**Sylar finds someone who understands him. In helping her, will he help himself on his road back to humanity? Inspired by Frankenstein. If you know the story, you'll see why.**

**Hope you enjoy. Let me know if you do.**

**I do not own Heroes.**

**Without eyes, I see**

Sylar sat on the bus bench, not waiting for a bus, of course. But it was shady here, and he was tired of wandering around. Matt hadn't been home, and he wasn't quite sure where to go next. His visit with the cheerleader...... Claire, had been more fruitful than he'd anticipated. Not only had he given her a new direction for her life, he had discovered that there might be a way for him to find his humanity again. It was what he wanted, right? For too long, he had lived outside the norm, taking what he wanted, hurting people and never looking back. A chance meeting with a Japanese man in a diner years ago gave him a moment to pause. But only a moment. He continued living the life others had given him. One that made them label him a monster. So years later, he found himself wanting to throw that label away, and live amongst the very people he despised. And why? Because this man, this wretched romantic, who risked death to save his sweetheart, told him his future.

_I will tell you how you die. You die alone. I'm sorry. That means you collect a lot of powers, you kill a lot of people. You will become strong, the strongest of them all, but in the end, it won't make any difference. We all gather to stop you. You alone. No one will mourn your death, no one will shed a tear, no one. I wish I can change Fate, but you must go on your path._

And he had. He stole the greatest power of all, the ability to regenerate, from Claire. It gave him virtual immortality. It seemed so long ago to him, but to her, it was as if he had just invaded her mind. Her hatred had felt fresh, and added to that was her anger at his killing Nathan, her father. But somehow, or he liked to think, they had reached a rapport.

Sylar watched traffic come and go in the street, and scanned passers by, some who even looked back at him. Funny how people who didn't know him, didn't fear him. At one time, he would have been satisfied to have everyone fear him.

A young woman approached the bench, carrying a canvas bag over her shoulder. Her long, dark hair was pulled back into a high ponytail, her eyes covered by stylish sunglasses. "Is there anyone sitting here?"

"Just me. I'm on this end. That side's free," he said, as if stating the obvious to someone who didn't know better.

"Thank you," she said, setting down her bag on the bench. After she sat down, she crossed her legs, and pulled a book out of the bag. She opened the book, and began running her fingers over the pages.

"You're blind?" Sylar asked, without thinking. _No wonder she didn't know I was here_, he thought.

But the woman didn't seem to take offence, and instead, teasingly said, "What gave me away? Don't tell me, it was the sunglasses."

"Sorry," he said, hesitating, as if the word were foreign to him. "I'm Sylar."

"My name is Anne, but everyone calls me Annie. Are you waiting for the bus? I'm here almost every afternoon, and you've never been here before."

"No. I'm just sitting. What book are you reading?" He glanced over at the title, and saw it was a history of the Navy during World War II. "Not exactly light reading," he said, with a smirk.

"My father was an officer in the Navy. I have it in my blood, I suppose. I'd have joined, except they have this requirement that all recruits must be able to see," she said with a laugh.

Sylar found her sense of humor intriguing. There was no bitterness in her voice. Here he was, a man with many powers, while she was missing one of her senses, a pretty important one. "How long have you been blind?" he queried.

Annie found his forthrightness refreshing over people who treated her like glass, or worse, pretended she wasn't there at all. "I was about seven years old. It just...happened. My eyesight had been fading for days, and the doctors didn't know why. One day I woke up and it was gone completely."

"Was it harder, you think, losing it at so young an age, than being born blind?" Sylar turned on the bench so that he was facing her. He really was interested in their discussion, surprising himself.

"I preferred losing it when I did. I mean, I know what a rose looks like, and I will always have that. Someone who's been blind from birth wouldn't."

Sylar thought about what she had said. Roses had never interested him much. When he was younger, his interest had lain with fixing things. His natural ability led him to follow in his adoptive father's footsteps. But that was a whole other life. It was as if it hadn't been his life at all. "So why are you at this bus stop every afternoon?"

"I work at the Taylor School for the Blind, just down the street. I'm a teacher there. You know, Sylar, I sometimes get emotional glimmers off people."

"Intuitive?" he suggested, wondering if she had an actual ability.

She shrugged. "Maybe it's making up for the lack of sight. But if you need to talk, I am very good at listening."

Sylar thought for a moment. He had no place to be, and he found this woman quite interesting. "I might take you up on that."

"Look, there's a diner across the street. They make the best lemon meringue pie. If you care to join me, we can chat."

Sylar wondered if he was being hasty in accepting her offer, but instead asked, "Do they have peach pie?"

Annie laughed. "The best! Come on. Let's try both."

Sylar rose, and held out his hand, then realized Annie wouldn't see it being proffered. "Can I help you?" he solicited.

"Sylar, I have walked this block so many times, I don't even use the cane anymore. But I will accept your kind offer." She put out her own hand, until she felt a large, warm one grasp hers. Together, they walked across the street and into the small diner.

"There's a booth to the left and toward the back," Annie said. "It's quiet, and I sometimes read while I'm eating."

Sylar actually let her lead him to the booth. He turned when he heard a voice calling out to his companion.

"Annie! You made it today. And you brought a handsome gentleman with you." A waitress, an older woman, walked up to the booth as Sylar and Annie were settling in.

"This is Sylar, Mary. Is he handsome? I can't really tell. His voice sounds nice though." Annie smiled across the table at where she assumed Sylar was sitting.

"Oh, that he is, and I wouldn't lie to you. Now what can I get for you both?" Mary pulled out an order pad, pen poised.

"Sylar would like to try some of your world famous peach pie. And I'll take the lemon meringue, of course."

"Coming right up, sweetie." Mary went to go get their order, leaving them alone.

Sylar sat looking at the pretty woman who'd been given a harsh blow in life. Yet, she hadn't let it get her down. No anger, no blaming others. It was her lot, and she had accepted it with grace. He reached across the table, and gently removed the glasses from her face.

Annie jumped slightly, unprepared for this action.

"I'm sorry," Sylar said, handing her the glasses. "I just wanted to see them." His curiosity was rewarded with a pair of beautiful blue eyes, looking at him, but not focused on him.

Annie tucked the sunglasses into her bag. "What are **your **eyes like?"

Sylar grinned, and looked down at the table. Most people didn't want to look into his eyes, because usually in them, they saw the foretelling of their own death. He peered upward, answering, "They're brown. People don't usually compliment my eyes."

Annie smiled, and leaned back against her seat. "So what's your story, Sylar? Why were you just sitting there on the bench?"

Sylar saw no reason to make up a story. "I was looking for someone...an acquaintance, and he wasn't home. I didn't know where else to go."

"Are you alone, Sylar?" Annie asked.

He looked at her, startled. How could she have known? But of course, she didn't mean alone, as in his own fear, confessed to Claire. "Yes, I'm alone. I don't live here in town. Once I see...my friend, I'll know what I should be doing."

Just then, Mary arrived, tray in hand. "Here's your pie, darlin's. I also brought you some hot tea. I hope you like tea, Sylar."

He nodded. "Yes, I do. Thank you." He accepted the plate which held a large piece of peach pie. He waited until Mary had given Annie her pie, and made sure she knew where her fork lay.

"Enjoy!" she said with a smile, and left to help new customers.

Annie picked up her fork, and cut into her piece, bringing a chunk up to her mouth with a practiced motion. "Mmm," she enthused. "This is the best. How's yours?" she asked Sylar.

He dug into his own piece, and taking a bite, relished the lightness of the crust and the sweetness of the peaches. "It's delicious," he mumbled, his mouth still chewing. He picked up his cup, and sipped the herbal tea. He felt the hot liquid slide down his throat, warming his insides. He noticed Annie's hand seeking her cup. With two fingers poised, he moved the cup slowly forward until her own hand found it.

"So, is there anything you want to talk about?" Annie offered.

Sylar thought about the many horrible things he could tell her. She wouldn't look at him with the same regard, he was sure. That was something he didn't want to do, lose her good regard. "I've done some bad things to people. Unforgivable things."

"But you want people to forgive you, right? So you think, how do I make amends?"

Sylar didn't know how this woman could see into his soul, without a power or without knowing him. He found himself wanting to hear more.

"I saw this...person recently, someone I had hurt. She was angry with me, and rightfully so. But I think we're on our way to, at least, not trying to kill each other." Sylar didn't worry about the honesty of his words. Most people never meant it when they said they could kill so and so. However, in his case, he usually meant it.

"So what do you want to do now, Sylar?" Annie took another bite of her pie.

"I don't know. I know I have to make a decision. That's why I'm waiting to see this friend of mine. I think he might be able to help me."

Annie put down her folk, saying, "Reaching out to others for help is a good thing, Sylar."

"Well, I hurt him too. I'm not so sure he'll be willing. I've got nothing to lose by asking." Sylar knew asking wasn't something he excelled at. He intended to tell Parkman what he wanted of him. And if he refused....

"I know our lives don't always end up the way we picture it. If we could somehow change something, one thing, that made us into the person we turned out to be...." Her voice drifted off. "Have you finished your pie yet?"

He looked down at the empty plate. The peach pie had been one of the best he'd ever had. "I have."

"Well, why don't we take a walk. There's a park across the street, just behind that bench where we met. Want to go see it? Unless you have to leave, of course." Annie stood and waited.

"No, it will be a while longer." Sylar stood. He took out his wallet, and was just about to toss a twenty dollar bill on the table, when Annie stopped him.

"Mary always lets me have pie when I come here. It'll be ok." She pulled her sunglasses from the bag, and placed them on her nose.

"Your hearing is amazing." Sylar still threw the twenty on the table, as a tip, and taking Annie's hand, led her outside.

They walked to the park, where Annie, still holding Sylar's hand, showed him the rose garden. She bent to sniff one of the bushes, and frowned. "This variety has no fragrance. Some don't."

Sylar sought one that had an odor, and with a quick flick of his finger, sliced the bloom free of its stem. He handed it to her. "This one smells nice."

Annie took the flower, inhaling the fragrance, and smiled. "You shouldn't have done that, Sylar. This **is** a public park, after all."

He watched her with the rose held up to her nose, smiling and feeling no bitterness in her lack of sight. Enjoying something so trivial as a flower seemed foreign to him. He made a decision then and there. Sylar took Annie's chin with his hand, turning her head slightly. "Do you believe in fate?" He peered at her, and into her brain.

"What do you mean?" Annie asked, not sure what he was up to. Curious, she waited. They were out in public, after all. All she'd have to do was scream, and people would come running. But oddly, she trusted this man she'd known all of an hour.

Sylar reached out to Annie, his hand hovering near her cheek.

Sensing his warmth so near her, she automatically jerked back.

"Be still a minute." He placed his hand on her cheek, moving it up her head, using his intuitive aptitude to sense why her sight wasn't working. It seemed an easy thing to find, since the human senses were like programs. As a computer programmer would work to find why a computer system stopped functioning, he would try to find why her sight went away so suddenly. Once he knew why, he would see if he could fix it, much as he had fixed the Japanese man's girlfriend of her aneurysm three years or so ago.

"Sylar, what are you doing?"

"Shhh!" he ordered. He was almost there, at the right spot. He felt something. The optic nerves, not quite right. He could see it, irreparable according to the books. But he had a gift. And he used it.

Annie gasped, as she felt something like a rubber band snapping in her head.

Sylar looked down at her, holding her head in his hands. "How do you feel?" He removed the sunglasses.

Annie put her hands over her face, then lowered them. In fear, she slowly opened her eyes. And Sylar's figure stood before her. She looked up at him. He was blurry, very blurry, but she could see him, and she could see light all around his dark form. She smiled, then laughed. Tears slid down her cheeks, as sheer joy went through her. "Sylar, I can see light. And you! Not clearly, but I can see you." She impulsively hugged him.

At first, he did nothing, but he finally let himself feel her happiness. His arms went around her, holding her as she clung to him. This was the second time he had cured someone of a physical ailment. His mind jumped back to memories of pain and death, everyone else's. He had done so much harm to so many. It felt so good, doing something simple, like giving a woman back her eyesight? He smiled, thinking of the way Claire had fought him, by sticking a pencil in his eye. He had merely pulled it out, and his eye healed. Most people couldn't do that. At the time, it hadn't even angered him, although very briefly it had hurt like hell.

"Sylar, how did you do that? I know you did something."

He looked into those brilliant blue eyes, now red with tears. "Please don't ask. And when you go to your doctor's, I would appreciate you not tell him about this."

She peered into his face, wishing she could see him better. She wanted to know if Mary was right in saying he was handsome. "I won't tell anyone, Sylar. I promise." She started to walk towards a trash can, but stopped. She turned back to him. "Is it permanent?"

"Yes."

She opened her bag, and taking out her cane, she tossed it into the trash can. She held out her hand, which Sylar took, and they walked to the bus bench. They sat together in silence. Annie took in the blurry scenery, smiling all the while. Finally, she said, "You healed me. I don't how or even why. But I am grateful to you, Sylar. You gave me back something I'd lost long ago. I hope you find what it is you've lost." She tightened her grip on his hand. "This is what it's all about, you know. Contact with another human being. You can't live alone, and live! Existence isn't enough. I think you already know that." She paused a moment. "When you can put someone else's needs ahead of your own, like you did for me, you'll be heading in the right direction. Will I see you again?"

"No, probably not," he said. Sylar knew that it was only because of his powers, he was able to give Annie her sight back. But how long would it be before he used them to kill. No, he had to purge himself of all of them. Fate gave him a mission, to heal this woman who had done good for others. Now it was his turn. By getting rid of all of his abilities, his and those he had stolen, he might be able to make amends, however long it took him. And to once more, be part of the world.

He gave Annie a final hug. "I'd better go now. Be sure not to tell anyone..."

"I understand. It went away without an explanation. It came back without one as well. Take care of yourself, Sylar. I hope you find the answers you're seeking."

He lowered his head, as he turned away from her. That was just a second life he helped restore. It was a start. Now he'd go back to see if Matt was home, and try to restore his own life.


End file.
